The Iron Raven by Julie Kagawa

Author:Julie Kagawa [Kagawa, Julie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Published: 2020-11-16T19:37:26+00:00

13

WE DO NOT FORGET

“Nyx!” I lunged, catching her as she collapsed to her knees, winking out again for a fraction of a second. Coaleater snorted in alarm, and Meghan and Ash came forward, their gazes somber, as the Forgotten flickered and sputtered in my arms like a dying flashlight.

“Nyx. Hey, look at me.” I gripped her forearms, feeling helpless and terrified as she slumped against me, going transparent for a heartbeat. Golden eyes met my own, her expression solemn but calm. “Focus,” I urged in a whisper. “Talk to me, assassin. You can’t leave us yet. If you Fade out now, I’m going to have to tell Keirran that the Iron Realm was too much for you to handle after all, and having to say ‘I told you so’ for the next hundred years would be exhausting.”

A faint smile crossed her face, even as she wavered at the edges for a moment. “Are you...trying to annoy me into staying, Goodfellow?”

“I play to my strengths. Is it working?”

“Well, you have succeeded in making me want to stab you,” Nyx whispered, but she had stopped flickering like a weak candle and was slowly regaining color. Or at least not looking like a transparent wraith. She took a deep, careful breath and straightened, gripping my arms for balance, testing her range of motion. “It’s over,” she told me. “I think...I’m all right now. Whatever happened, it seems to have passed.”

“You didn’t tell us you were Fading,” came Ash’s voice over my shoulder, and part of me bristled at the proximity. “We could have helped you, had we known.”

“The Iron Realm has some of the most advanced healers in the Nevernever,” Meghan added, stepping forward. “They can’t stop the Fade, but they might be able to slow it for a time.”

But Nyx gave her head a stubborn shake and rose, drawing me up with her. “There’s no need,” she insisted. “I’m grateful, Your Majesty, but I think I just need to rest. My apologies, I didn’t know I was that close to Fading, but it’s done. I’ve always been fairly certain my time here was limited.”

“Screw that,” I said, angry now. “If you’re so close to Fading, chasing down some big monster who nearly killed us before can’t be great for your health.”

But Nyx met my gaze, calm and unruffled, and she gave a wry smile. “I am fine, Puck. Whatever that was, it must have been a fluke, or a reaction to the sun and the Iron Realm at the same time. I know my duty, and this will not stop me from continuing the mission. I am in no danger of disappearing, at least not for a while.” I took a breath to argue, but she overrode me. “And even if I was, what could you do about it? Some things are beyond anyone’s reach.”

I crossed my arms. “You’d be surprised.”

“Regardless.” She raised her chin. “I’m coming with you. I don’t plan to return to Keirran until I’m certain the creature is dead.

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